Energizing our future : rational choices for the 21st century / John R. Wilson, Griffin Burgh.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Wilson, John R.

Contributor:

Burgh, Griffin.

Louis A. Duhring Fund.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Power resources.

Physical Description:

xxvi, 390 pages : illustrations ; 25 cm

Place of Publication:

Hoboken, N.J. : Wiley-Interscience, [2008]

Summary:

Developing an environmentally benign and strategically sound energy economy for the twenty-first century is one of the biggest and most complex challenges of our time. Energizing Our Future surveys and analyzes in considerable depth the present and future economic and technical viability of all known potential energy sources in the context of real-world production, distribution, and environmental constraints. It addresses three critical energy-related topics that are causing great confusion in public debate-global warming, the hydrogen economy, and nuclear power-and gives readers an opportunity to form a grounded, factually correct foundation for understanding the energy challenge and develop their own informed and actionable opinion. Coverage includes: Global warming, The hydrogen economy, Nuclear energy and the plutonium economy, Conventional oil and oil reserves, Coal and bituminous reserves, Biomass and ethanol, Methanol, Diesel and biodiesel, Solar energy and photovoltaics, Fuel cells for stationary and mobile use.

This insightful and much-needed perspective represents the first comprehensive review of the rational alternative energy choices for the twenty-first century. The subject matter is engaging and factual, enabling readers to grasp the gravity and urgency of impending choices, some of which will have to be made individually in practice. It is a must-read for political and industrial leaders, business and technology consultants, well-informed general readers, and students and teachers in chemistry, physics, engineering, energy technologies, politics, and the environmental sciences.

Contents:

Introduction: Rising Energy Costs xix

Part I A Trilogy of Popular Misconceptions 1

1 Global Warming 3

Conventional Wisdom 4

CO[subscript 2] and the Carbon Cycle 7

The Greenhouse Effect 10

Recent Climate Changes 11

Carbon Dioxide 13

Other Global Warming "Forcing Agents" 15

Water Vapor 15

Methane 20

Nitrous Oxide 21

Ozone 22

Sulfur 24

Other Pollutants 24

Carbon-Based and Other Particulates 26

Solar Influences-Insolation and Irradiance 26

Global Net Primary Productivity (NPP) 30

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change 32

IPCC Report Conclusions 34

Footnote on the IPCC 35

Dealing with Global Warming 36

Can Anything Be Done? 37

The Kyoto Protocol 38

2 The Hydrogen Economy (Aka, the Impossible Dream) 41

The Promise of Hydrogen 42

The Scale of the Task-Why Replace Gasoline? 42

Replacing Fuels Other than Gasoline 43

Hydrogen as an Alternative Fuel 44

Hydrogen Production Methods 44

Water-Splitting Processes-Overview 47

Hydrogen from Electrolysis 48

Electrolytic Hydrogen Production 49

Oxygen By-products 49

Energy Consumption and Electrolyzer Efficiency 50

Electrolysis: Emissions 53

Electrolysis: Economics 53

Hydrogen from Hydrocarbons 54

Thermal and Catalytic Reforming from Natural Gas 54

Catalytic Thermochemical Reforming 55

Scaling Issues-Up and Down 56

Combustion CO[subscript 2] from Reforming 57

Hydrogen Production Costs 59

Natural Gas Reserves and Hydrogen 61

Natural Gas and Hydrogen Manufacture 62

Other Hydrogen Production Methods 62

Photoelectrolysis 63

Biomass Conversion to Hydrogen 64

Hydrogen Production-Summary 65

Safety Considerations 66

Transporting and Distributing Hydrogen 67

Compressing Hydrogen 68

Liquid Hydrogen 69

Pipelining Hydrogen 70

Pipeline Leakage Losses 73

Road Tanker Transportation of Hydrogen 73

Hydrogen Leakage Losses 74

Transportation and Distribution Alternatives 75

Distributed Manufacturing of Hydrogen 75

By Electrolysis 75

By Reforming 76

Hydrogen Reformer Reliability 76

Hydrogen Reformer Safety 76

Onboard Manufacture of Hydrogen 77

Hydrogen Storage 77

Hydrogen Storage Approaches 78

Compressed Hydrogen Gas: Containment Technologies for 5000-10,000 psig 78

Liquid Hydrogen: Cryogenic Containment 80

Storage in Metals and Metal Hydrides 84

Background on Metal Hydrides 86

Complex Hydrides 89

Catalyzed Hydrogen Adsorption and/or Desorption 91

Feasibility of Metal Hydrides as Storage Media 92

Hydrogen Adsorption/Desorption: "Chemical Hydrides" 92

Hydride Slurries for Hydrogen Storage and Transportation 93

Possible Nonmetal Hydrides/Hydrogen Carriers 95

Hydrocarbons via Partial Dehydrogenation 96

Carbon-Based Adsorption Systems 97

Graphite 97

Graphitic Nanotubes 98

Zeolites 99

Novel Hydrogen Storage Methods 99

Hydrogen Carriers 101

Ammonia 101

Methanol 103

Hydrogen Storage and DOE Criteria 103

Storage Implications for Light-Duty Vehicles 104

Hydrogen Storage with No Gravimetric or Volumetric Capacity Constraints 112

Hydrogen Storage Assessment 112

Hydrogen Safety 114

Some Additional Safety Issues 115

Summary of Hydrogen Issues 116

3 Nuclear Energy and the Plutonium Economy 117

The Influence of Nuclear Energy 117

Evolution of Reactor Designs 122

Generation IV Reactors 123

Fuel Recycling and Mixed Oxide Fuel 125

Mixed Oxide Fuel (MOX) Use in Light-Water Reactors 125

Mixed Oxide Fuel (MOX) Production and Processing 126

Fast-Breeder Reactors 127

Gas-Cooled Fast Reactor (GFR) 128

Lead-Cooled Fast Reactor (LFR) 128

Sodium-Cooled Fast Reactor (SFR) 129

Supercritical-Water-Cooled Reactor (SCWR) 131

Very High-Temperature Reactor (VHTR) 133

Radioactive Waste Disposal 134

Nuclear Facility Decommissioning 137

Decommissioning Examples 139

Transmutation of Nuclear Wastes 140

Uranium Supply Concerns 142

Supply Projections 146

Uranium from Seawater 150

Uncertainty about Safe and Sustainable Reactor Technology 151

The Problem in Ontario, Canada 152

Fusion Power 153

The Future is Dimming on Nuclear Power 153

Part II Energy Options for the Future 155

4 Conventional Oil and Oil Reserves 157

Oil Reserves 158

Conventional Natural Gas 164

"Unconventional" Oil 167

"Unconventional" Gas 168

Coal-Bed Methane (CBM) 169

"Tight" Gas 170

Stranded or Orphaned Gas 170

A Short (Age) Summary 171

Who Really Sets Oil Prices? 171

Future Supply, Demand, and Pricing 172

Oil 172

Natural Gas and Synthetics 175

5 Coal and Bituminous Reserves 178

Coal 179

The Lurgi Process (Coal to Syngas or High BTU Fuel Gas) 182

The Hygas Process (Coal to SNG) 183

The Bi-Gas Process (Coal to SNG) 183

The CO[subscript 2] Acceptor Process 183

Other Coal Processes 186

Underground Processing of Coal 186

Other Important Alternative Energy Sources 187

Municipal Waste 188

6 Biomass and Ethanol 189

Current Availability 189

Biomass Conversion Technologies 191

Prepreparation 191

Conversion 191

Enzymatic Saccharification of Cellulose 192

Steam Explosion 192

Saccharification and Fermentation 192

Conversion Products and By-Products 193

Sugars 193

Value-Added Products (e.g., Ethanol, Polymers) 193

By-Products 193

Animal Feed 193

Lignin and Lignin Derivatives 194

Cellulose Derivatives 194

Other Raw Materials for Biomass 194

Large-Scale, High-Value End Products from Non-Corn Biomass Conversion 195

Chemicals from Corn 195

Available Technologies for Chemicals Production from Biomass 196

Acid Hydrolysis of Biomass Cellulose 196

Countercurrent Hydrolysis 197

Enzymatic Hydrolysis 197

Commercialization 198

Cost Implications of Biomass Use 198

Net Energy Balances 199

Manufacturing Efficiency 200

The Thermodynamics of Growing Corn 201

The Thermodynamics of Processing Corn into Ethanol 202

Ethanol Production Efficiencies 206

Corn Production in the United States 207

Federal Subsidies for Ethanol 208

Longer Term Ethanol Prospects 208

Final Ethanol Observations 209

7 Methanol 211

Possible Fossil Sources of Syngas 214

Methanol as an Energy Carrier 215

Methanol Manufacturing and Applications 216

8 Diesel and Biodiesel 219

"Clean Diesel" Fuel and Diesel Fuel Substitutes 219

The Diesel Market: The Future of Diesel Engines and Diesel Fuels 219

Diesel Engine Emissions 222

Biodiesel 223

What is Biodiesel? 224

Advantages of Biodiesel 227

Disadvantages of Biodiesel 233

Oxidative and Hydrolytic Stability 234

Use in Diesel Hybrids 236

Alternatives to Vegetable Oil-Based Biodiesel for Diesel Substitution 236

Other Alcohols in Petroleum Diesel 236

Other Oxygenated Additives in Petroleum Diesel 237

Gas-to-Liquid (GTL) or Biomass-to-Liquid (BTL) Products as Diesel Substitutes 238

Diesel Fuels and Fuel Substitutes-Summary and Discussion 241

Diesel Fuel Conclusions 243

9 Solar Energy and Photovoltaics 245

Solar Radiation 245

Scattered, Beam, and Albedo Radiation 246

Solar Insolation 247

Direct Solar Energy 248

Passive and Active Solar Heating 248

Solar Photovoltaic Systems 250

General Operation of PV Cells 251

PV Types 253

Amorphous Silicon 253

Single-Crystalline Silicon 254

Polycrystalline Silicon 255

Polycrystalline Thin Films 255

Polycrystalline Thin-Film Materials 255

Multijunction PV Cells 257

Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells 257

Organic Solar Cells (OSC) 258

Grid-Connected Solar Energy 259

PV Solar Energy Prices 259

PV Manufacturing Giants 260

Future Outlook 261

10 Fuel Cells for Stationary and Mobile Use 263

Fuel Cell Principles 264

Types of Fuel Cell 264

The Importance of FC Operating Temperatures 265

Polymer Electrolyte Membrane/Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell (PEMFC) 266

Regenerative PEM Cells 269

The Direct Methanol

Fuel Cell 269

Solid Oxide Fuel Cells (SOFCs) 271

Hybrid Power Systems Incorporating SOFCs 272

Other Important Fuel Cells 273

The Alkaline Fuel Cell (AFC) 273

The Phosphoric Acid Fuel Cell (PAFC) 273

The Molten Carbonate Fuel Cell (MCFC) 273

Fuels for Fuel Cells 274

Hydrogen-A Bad Choice for Fuel Cells 274

Real-World Fuel Cell Efficiencies 276

User Expectations 278

Onboard Fuel Storage Requirements 279

Realistic DOE Objectives 280

Current Status 281

Appendix 1 FAQ on Energy and Hydrogen 285

Questions on Basic Facts 285

Selected Terms and Conditions Courtsy H.S.D.Q.E. 325.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Local Notes:

Acquired for the Penn Libraries with assistance from the Louis A. Duhring Fund.

ISBN:

9780471790532

0471790532

OCLC:

140107958

Online:

Publisher description

Contributor biographical information